Knees
by x-Miyako-x
Summary: drabble request: "Our characters in a scary situation." Erestor/OMC. Part 3 of the "Drabbles Out of Control" series (unrelated by plot).


Disclaimer: I do not own the Lord of the Rings (and associated) book series, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story. The character of Endimion does not belong to me either, he belongs to a friend.

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Erestor had been looking for Endimion for the last few hours. It is when the boy had been missing from dinner that Erestor finally decided to go look for him. He'd been looking forward to speaking with him and had therefore noted his absence within a few minutes when the rest of the guests had settled in.

He regretted being too busy to show him around. The other had been so eager to explore, he must have left to do so on his own. This worried Erestor greatly. At the altitude which the city was found, one who did not know their way around might fall to their death.

Erestor searched every possible room within the Last Homely House where Endimion could have been hiding. He searched the guest room he'd been given, the library, the kitchens, the springs… After looking everywhere he could think of, he started looking through the woods.

The young elf was not accustomed to the ways of the valley, much less its dangerous architechture. Although there was quite a ways to go, the valley was built into the side of a mountain and was therefore surrounded, on most sides, by cliffs and waterfalls.

Erestor sighed, but kept walking. It was getting dark, the sun had gone down, and he would soon be unable to see properly in order to keep looking for him. In all his haste, he had not thought to bring with him a lantern.

"Endimion," he shouted, "Endimion! Are you here, Endimion?"

He went along crying out and shouting for the lost elf. And finally, when he could see no more and decided to turn back for help and light, he reached a clearing through which ran a stream - a fast running river – which likely led straight to a waterfall.

He sat by the stream and sighed, _Oh Endimion, where are you hiding?_

He dipped his feet into the water and allowed himself to enjoy the way the light of the moon reflected on the water. _Where could that boy be_? The silence of his surroundings was soothing to his worried mind, and then it wasn't. A shout rang through the crisp night air, raising goosebumps on his arms. A shrill voice could be heard over the loud-water rapids.

_Endimion!_

Erestor rushed to his feet and ran along the river, his panic rising the closer he got to the rapids. Was he in the water? What was he doing there? _What was he doing there?_

"Endimion!" Erestor shouted once again, "Endimion! Where are you? Answer me!"

The only sound that came back to him was a garbled yell – a desperate call for help – above the rushing water. Erestor scanned the rapids and soon spotted the head of light hair belonging to the boy. The young elf was hanging onto a rock as tightly as he could, as the water pounded his back. It didn't look like he would be able to do so for much longer.

"Hold!" Erestor shouted, "Hold on, Endimion! Do not let go!"

The boy's head snapped up and Erestor's name rushed past his lips. The councillorhurriedly removed his robes and, for once, did not hesitate to remove his tunic as well. He tossed them aside, away from the water, and leapt into the river, steadying himself before leaning forward to reach for Endimion.

"Come Endimion," Erestor held his hands out for the boy, "Slowly. Come to me slowly. I will catch you. I am here."

Keeping his arms out, Erestor waited for the younger elf to move closer. The process was long and terrifying until Endimion could finally reach out and take Erestor's hand. The councillor held on tightly until he could get the boy's other hand, and pulled as strongly as he could to get him safely back on land.

Giving a final push to make sure the boy didn't fall back into the water, Erestor's eyes widened rapidly in shock as his foot slipped. The short yelp that left his lips was interrupted by the flow of water as he went under. His arms went out and he waved them back and forth frantically, trying to get a hold of something – anything – to pull himself out.

At long last, his fingers brushed first one branch, then a second, before he managed to pull himself up high enough to take a breath. Heaving himself up, Erestor searched desperately for a way out of the water. The only way he could see was a rock several feet away with a low-hanging branch over it.

He took a deep breath and pushed himself in its direction. His face tilted up and feet barely touching the bottom of the river, he made his way to the rock. Once reached, Erestor pulled himself onto it and sighed before sucking in another deep breath. He then reached up for the branch but his fingers slipped. Taking a few seconds to calm and stabilize himself, Erestor tried once again, smiling in relief when he was able to get a good hold to pull himself closer. He reached further and further up the branch before swinging his legs up and making his way back to land – on the wrong side of the river.

"Endimion!" Erestor shouted to the boy.

"Yes! I'm here," he heard from a little ways down.

Erestor headed back upstream to find the boy, and hopefully a safe place to cross back. A pale hand caught his attention and he turned to find Endimion waving, "I'm here, Erestor! I'm here!"

"Good," Erestor answered back, "Follow along the river but be careful not to fall back in! I will lead the way to a safer crossing point and then we can head back to the house."

The fair-haired boy nodded and followed along as requested, taking care to pick up Erestor's discarded robe and tunic on the beforehand. It was only a few short moments later that they reached the crossing point. Erestor slowly crossed back over and sat by a tree, huffing for breath.

"I think," Erestor started, "that perhaps we should _not_ do this again."

Endimion nodded his head vigorously, "That is a good idea, yes."

"Now what do you say to heading back where was can dry up and sit by a warm fire in the safety of the Last Homely House?"


End file.
